(a) Pursuant tosection 8e [7 U.S.C. 608e-1] of the Agricultural Marketing Agreement Act of 1937, as amended [7 U.S.C 601-674], and Part 944—Fruits; Import Regulations, the importation into the United States of any avocados, except the Hass, Fuerte, Zutano, and Edranol varieties, is prohibited unless:

(1) Any portion of the skin of the individual avocados has changed to the color normal for that fruit when mature for those varieties which normally change color to any shade of red or purple when mature, except for the Linda variety; or

(2) Such avocados meet the minimum weight or diameter requirements for the Monday nearest each date specified, through the Sunday immediately prior to the nearest Monday of the specified date in the next column, for each variety listed in the following table I: Provided, that avocados may not be handled prior to the earliest date specified in column A of such table for the respective variety; Provided further, There are no restrictions on size or weight on or after the date specified in column D; Provided further, That up to a total of 10 percent, by count to the individual fruit in each lot may weigh less than the minimum specified or be less than the specified diameter, except that no such avocados shall be over 2 ounces lighter than the minimum weight specified for the variety: Provided further, That up to double such tolerance shall be permitted for fruit in an individual container in a lot.

Table 1

Variety

Adate

Min. wt.

Min. diam.

Bdate

Min. wt.

Min. diam.

Cdate

Min. wt.

Min. diam.

Ddate

1 Avocados of the West Indian type varieties and seedlings not listed elsewhere in table 1.

2 Avocados of the Guatemalan type varieties and seedlings, hybrid varieties and seedlings, and unidentified seedlings not listed elsewhere in table I.

Dr. Dupuis #2

5-30

16

3 7/16

6-13

14

3 5/16

7-04

12

3 2/16

7-18

Simmons

6-20

16

3 9/16

7-04

14

3 7/16

7-18

12

3 1/16

8-01

Pollock

6-20

18

3 11/16

7-04

16

3 7/16

7-18

14

3 4/16

8-01

Hardee

6-27

16

3 2/16

7-04

14

2 14/16

7-11

12

7-25

Nadir

6-27

14

3 3/16

7-04

12

3 1/16

7-11

10

2 14/16

7-18

Ruehle

7-04

18

3 11/16

7-117-18

1614

3 9/163 7/16

8-018-08

1210

3 5/163 3/16

8-15

Bernecker

7-18

18

3 6/16

8-01

16

3 5/16

8-15

14

3 4/16

8-29

Miguel (P)

7-18

22

3 13/16

8-01

20

3 12/16

8-15

18

3 10/16

8-29

Nesbitt

7-18

22

3 12/16

8-01

16

3 5/16

8-08

14

3 3/16

8-22

Tonnage

8-01

16

3 6/16

8-15

14

3 4/16

8-22

12

3 0/16

8-29

Waldin

8-01

16

3 9/16

8-15

14

3 7/16

8-29

12

3 4/16

9-12

Tower II

8-01

14

36/16

8-15

12

34/16

8-29

10

32/16

9-05

Beta

8-08

18

38/16

8-15

16

35/16

8-29

14

33/16

9-05

Lisa (P)

8-08

12

3 2/16

8-15

11

3 0/16

8-22

Black Prince

8-15

28

4 1/16

8-29

23

3 14/16

9-12

16

3 9/16

10-03

Loretta

8-22

30

43/16

9-05

26

315/16

9-19

22

312/16

9-26

Booth 8

8-29

16

3 9/16

9-12

14

3 6/16

9-2610-10

1210

3 3/163 1/16

10-24

Booth 7

8-29

18

3 13/16

9-12

16

3 10/16

9-26

14

3 8/16

10-10

Booth 5

9-05

14

3 9/16

9-19

12

3 6/16

10-03

Choquette

9-26

28

44/16

10-10

24

41/16

10-24

20

314/16

11-7

Hall

9-26

26

3 14/16

10-10

20

3 9/16

10-24

18

3 8/16

11-07

Lula

10-03

18

3 11/16

10-10

14

3 6/16

10-31

12

3 3/16

11-14

Monroe

11-07

26

4 3/16

11-21

24

4 1/16

12-0512-19

2016

3 14/163 9/16

1-02

Arue

5-16

16

5-30

14

33/16

6-20

12

7-04

Donnie

5-23

16

35/16

6-06

14

34/16

6-20

12

7-04

Fuchs

6-06

14

3 3/16

6-20

12

3 0/16

7-04

K-5

6-13

18

3 5/16

6-27

14

3 3/16

7-11

West Indian Seedling 1

6-20

18

7-18

16

8-22

14

9-19

Gorham

7-04

29

4 5/16

7-18

27

4 3/16

8-15

Biondo

7-11

13

8-15

Petersen

7-11

14

3 8/16

7-18

12

3 5/16

7-25

10

3 2/16

8-08

232

7-18

14

8-01

12

8-15

Pinelli

7-18

18

3 12/16

8-01

16

3 10/16

8-15

Trapp

7-18

14

3 10/16

8-01

12

3 7/16

8-15

K-9

8-01

16

8-22

Christina

8-01

11

2 14/16

8-22

Catalina

8-15

24

8-29

22

9-19

Blair

8-29

16

3 8/16

9-12

14

3 5/16

10-03

Guatemalan Seedling 2

9-05

15

10-03

13

12-05

Marcus

9-05

32

4 12/16

9-19

24

4 5/16

10-31

Brooks 1978

9-05

12

3 4/16

9-12

10

3 1/16

9-19

8

2 14/16

10-10

Rue

9-12

30

4 3/16

9-19

24

3 15/16

10-03

18

3 9/16

10-17

Collinson

9-12

16

3 10/16

10-10

Hickson

9-12

12

3 1/16

9-26

10

3 0/16

10-10

Simpson

9-19

16

3 9/16

10-10

Chica

9-19

12

3 7/16

10-03

10

3 4/16

10-17

Leona

9-26

18

310/16

10-03

16

10-10

Melendez

9-26

26

314/16

10-10

22

311/16

10-24

18

37/16

11-07

Herman

10-03

16

3 9/16

10-17

14

3 6/16

10-31

Pinkerton (CP)

10-03

13

3 3/16

10-17

11

3 0/16

10-31

9

11-14

Taylor

10-10

14

3 5/16

10-24

12

3 2/16

11-07

Ajax (B-7)

10-10

18

3 14/16

10-31

Booth 3

10-10

16

3 8/16

10-17

14

3 6/16

10-31

Semil 34

10-17

18

310/16

10-31

16

38/16

11-14

14

35/16

11-28

Semil 43

10-24

18

310/16

11-7

16

38/16

11-21

14

35/16

12-05

Booth 1

11-14

16

3 12/16

11-28

12

3 6/16

12-12

Zio (P)

11-14

12

3 1/16

11-28

10

2 14/16

12-12

Gossman

11-28

11

3 1/16

12-26

Brookslate

12-05

18

3 13/16

12-1212-19

1614

3 10/163 8/16

1-021-16

1210

3 5/16

1-30

Meya (P)

12-12

13

3 2/16

12-26

11

3 0/16

1-09

Reed (CP)

12-12

12

3 4/16

12-26

10

3 3/16

1-09

9

3 0/16

1-23

(3) Avocados which fail to meet the maturity requirements specified in this section must be maintained under the supervision of the Federal or Federal-State Inspection Service using the Positive Lot Identification program, and when presented for reinspection, must meet the maturity requirements which correspond to the date of the original inspection.

(b) The termdiameter means the greatest dimension measured at a right angle to a straight line from the stem to the blossom end of the fruit.

(c) The termimportation means release from custody of the United States Customs Service. The term commercial processing into products means the manufacture of avocado product which is preserved by any recognized commercial process, including canning, freezing, dehydrating, drying, the addition of chemical substances, or by fermentation.

(d) Any person may import up to 55 pounds of avocados exempt from the requirements specified in this section.

(e) The Federal or Federal-State Inspection Service, Fruit and Vegetable Division, Agricultural Marketing Service, United States Department of Agriculture, is designated as the governmental inspection service for certifying the grade, size, quality, and maturity of avocados imported into the United States. Inspection by the Federal or Federal-State Inspection Service with evidence thereof in the form of an official inspection certificate, issued by the respective service, applicable to the particular shipment of avocados, is required on all such imports. The inspection and certification services will be available upon application in accordance with the Regulations Governing Inspection, Certification and Standards of Fresh Fruits, Vegetables, and Other Products (7 CFR part 51), and in accordance with the regulation designating inspection services and procedure for obtaining inspection and certification (7 CFR 944.400).

(f) Any lot or portion thereof which fails to meet the import requirements, and is not being imported for purposes of consumption by charitable institutions, distribution by relief agencies, seed, or commercial processing into products; prior to or after reconditioning may be exported or disposed of under the supervision of the Federal or Federal-State Inspection Service with the costs of certifying the disposal of such lot borne by the importer.

(g) The maturity requirements of this section shall not be applicable to avocados imported for consumption by charitable institutions, distribution by relief agencies, seed, or commercial processing into products, but such avocados shall be subject to the safeguard provisions contained in§ 944.350.

The Department of Agriculture (USDA) is adopting, as a final rule, without change, an interim rule that changed the maturity requirements prescribed under the Florida avocado marketing order (order) and avocado import regulation. The interim rule changed the maturity shipping schedule to allow certain sizes and weights of the Choquette avocado variety to be shipped to the fresh market earlier. With this change, the maturity schedule better reflects the current maturity rate for the Choquette variety, facilitating the shipment of this variety as it matures.

Effective March 30, 2015; comments received by May 26, 2015 will be considered prior to issuance of a final rule.

7 CFR Parts 944, 980, and 999

Summary

This rule changes the reporting requirements for commodities exempt from import regulations under section 608(e) (hereinafter referred to as “8e”) of the Agricultural Marketing Agreement Act of 1937 by adding an option to electronically file an “Importer's Exempt Commodity Form” (FV-6 form). These changes are needed to bring the import regulations into conformance with the current practice of filing FV-6 forms electronically using the Marketing Order Online System (MOLS), an internet-based application that was implemented in 2008. This rule also changes the import regulations for dates and raisins by moving the FV-6 form-filing procedures for these two commodities to the safeguard procedure regulations for specialty crops and by making other administrative updates. These changes to the import regulations are also required to support the International Trade Data System (ITDS), a key White House economic initiative that will automate the filing of import and export information by the trade. All government agencies that are participating in the ITDS initiative, including AMS, are required by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (hereinafter referred to as “CBP”) to make updates to import and export regulations to provide for the electronic entry of shipment data.

This is a list of United States Code sections, Statutes at Large, Public Laws, and Presidential Documents, which provide rulemaking authority for this CFR Part.

The Department of Agriculture (USDA) is adopting, as a final rule, without change, an interim rule that changed the maturity requirements prescribed under the Florida avocado marketing order (order) and avocado import regulation. The interim rule changed the maturity shipping schedule to allow certain sizes and weights of the Choquette avocado variety to be shipped to the fresh market earlier. With this change, the maturity schedule better reflects the current maturity rate for the Choquette variety, facilitating the shipment of this variety as it matures.

Effective March 30, 2015; comments received by May 26, 2015 will be considered prior to issuance of a final rule.

7 CFR Parts 944, 980, and 999

Summary

This rule changes the reporting requirements for commodities exempt from import regulations under section 608(e) (hereinafter referred to as “8e”) of the Agricultural Marketing Agreement Act of 1937 by adding an option to electronically file an “Importer's Exempt Commodity Form” (FV-6 form). These changes are needed to bring the import regulations into conformance with the current practice of filing FV-6 forms electronically using the Marketing Order Online System (MOLS), an internet-based application that was implemented in 2008. This rule also changes the import regulations for dates and raisins by moving the FV-6 form-filing procedures for these two commodities to the safeguard procedure regulations for specialty crops and by making other administrative updates. These changes to the import regulations are also required to support the International Trade Data System (ITDS), a key White House economic initiative that will automate the filing of import and export information by the trade. All government agencies that are participating in the ITDS initiative, including AMS, are required by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (hereinafter referred to as “CBP”) to make updates to import and export regulations to provide for the electronic entry of shipment data.

This proposed rule invites comments on partially relaxing the handling requirements currently prescribed under the California table grape marketing order (order) and the table grape import regulation. The order regulates the handling of table grapes grown in a designated area of southeastern California and is administered locally by the California Desert Grape Administrative Committee (committee). The import regulation is authorized under section 8e of the Agricultural Marketing Agreement Act of 1937 and regulates the importation of table grapes into the United States. This action would partially relax the one-quarter pound minimum bunch size requirement in the order's regulations and the import regulation for U.S. No. 1 Table grade grapes packed in consumer packages known as clamshells weighing 5 pounds or less. Under the proposal, up to 20 percent of the weight of such containers may consist of single grape clusters weighing less than one-quarter pound, but consisting of at least five berries each. This rule would provide California desert grape handlers and importers with the flexibility to respond to an ongoing marketing opportunity to meet consumer needs.